LCR KaBoom!

[denster]

KodiakBeer

With all due respect you are completely off base. The barrel liner is not that thin. For the majority of it's length it is slightly over .100 thick on the wall dimension, somewhat thinner at the forcing cone obviously. Were this a serious design flaw we would have Rugers, Smith, Taurus and others that use this type of design going KaBoom in the first couple of hundred rounds on a regular basis.

 

[Cosmoline]

My guess would be metal fatigue or some imperfection in the alloy. Which isn't good.

Anyway I hope Ruger gets a chance to iron things out. And on the plus side, the important parts held together very well under the stress, with nothing exploding back at the shooter. The Polymer appears to be 100% intact.

 

[The Lone Haranguer]

This is a barrel failure - if it even is a structural failure and not the result of a bore obstruction - and has nothing to do with the frame (actually only the grip section, the frame actually surrounding the cylinder is metal) being polymer. Note that this section is not damaged.

 

[KodiakBeer]

For the majority of it's length it is slightly over .100 thick on the wall dimension, somewhat thinner at the forcing cone obviously.

Well, I wouldn't shoot high pressure loads through a .100 steel tube!

Look at the barrel on this SP 101.

Look at the barrel on the revolver that KaBoomed.

 

[Grey54956]

It may not have anything to do with the revolver's construction. When launching a new line, the prototypes are extensively tested using hot, proof loads. Metallurgy and heat treatment are carefully controlled. Material properties are tested and tested again. Capability is calculated. All and all, any gun coming from a reputable manufacturer will be extremely safe and reliable firing any and all standard factory ammunition. This is not to say that a failure cannot occur, but that it is vary, very unlikely. Given the forces involved, a squib load resulting in barrel obstruction can very likely create a KABOOM situation. Know your ammunition. Stick with factory ammo and pay attention, or face the consequences. If you want to reload, that's okay, but the efficacy of your firearms and your own safety are now entirely your own responsibility. Load too hot, load to weak, and who knows what will happen.

 

[denster]

KodiakBeer said:
"Well, I wouldn't shoot high pressure loads through a .100 steel tube!

Look at the barrel on this SP 101."

Yes you would and allready do. Check the cylinder wall thickness on your 101 where the pressure is highest. Now run out real quick and throw that ticking time bomb into the lake before it blows up on you.

Back to the original post you will note that there is a bulge mid tube and the rupture starts behind it and goes to the rear end. This is classic for a bore obstruction. That is what happened here end of story. Some of you guys may not like the concept of the LCR but try to keep some kind of objectivity in looking at the remains.

 

[KodiakBeer]

Yes you would and allready do. Check the cylinder wall thickness on your 101 where the pressure is highest.

I can see the pix and so can you. The barrel is much thicker on the SP 101, AND it has a steel shroud rather than an aluminum one. In fact, the KB'd revolver doesn't really have what I'd call a barrel, just a barrel liner wrapped in aluminum.

 

[denster]

KodiakBeer

One last post. The barrel liner in the LCR has a wall thickness in excess of .100 that is not including the shroud. That is more than enough and is in excess of the thickness of the cylinder walls in your 101 which you seem to like and feel is safe. Pressure in the cylinder being greater than barrel pressure. Anyway that's it no more Troll cookies.

 

[Gtscotty]

To my eyes, the fracture pattern of the exposed aluminum suggests that the force that caused the fracture emanated from a little past midway down the barrel and was primarily directed outward towards the camera. This failure would seem to support the squib/bulged barrel theory. Not to rehash what has already been said, but the way the aluminum fractured on this particular revolver offers some clues as to how the kaboom occurred. All things considered, i would say they the LCR contained the failure pretty well.

~$.02

 

[akadave]

Looks like a squib to me too. Factory ammo? Or range ammo or ammo you provide to the students as a low cost alternative to commercial?

 

[BushyGuy]

that could happen if you use a steady diet of +p ammo.

most people think LCR is rated to use only +p ammo can be the cause of using +p ammo all the time.

 

[snooperman]

I have seen this happen several times in my 50 years of...

shooting handguns, in magazine pictures as well as in gun shop and gun shows and most often it was caused by a "squib". I can not see Ruger not testing this new gun with +P ammo to a great degree before putting this gun on the market. Law suits would ruin their reputation.

 

[akadave]

Bushguy,

I think it would be ridiculous that Ruger would design a revolver that they clearly label +P and have possibility that it would just blow up if you shoot a certain amount of +P. They labeled it +P and Im believe unless its explicitly says in the manual or their site that using only +P could be dangerous to your health.

I do agree that with any firearm, using ammunition that is at the upper end of its pressure capabilities will accelerate wear but hardly blow the gun up. Talk about Russian Roulette!

 

[Cosmoline]

akadave is correct, the diet of +p would at worst make the parts wear out sooner.

the fracture pattern of the exposed aluminum suggests that the force that caused the fracture emanated from a little past midway down the barrel and was primarily directed outward towards the camera.

I don't know. The fracture ends where the aluminum is reinforced past the ejector rod shroud. That's why I was suspecting some kind of flaw in the alloy that just gave way under some stress.

 

[FoMoGo]

Also consider the minimal difference between standard .38 spl and .38 spl +p.


Jim

 

[denfoote]

I'm not a materials engineer neither am I a gunsmith.
I have, however, beta tested, that is, ran out and plopped my hard earned cash on the counter for the latest whiz bang wunderlistole.
My P3AT and PF9 come to mind. The former works fine after three trips back to the womb for rebirthing, the later still sits in the safe with a trigger reset problem that requires yet another factory redesigned part fix!!! I'm still disgusted with it, but I'll get around to plopping more cash into the hands of Unrepentant Package Smashers to ferry it back to it's point of origin, some day!!

My point is that I'm content to allow you young'ins take over the helm of testing that the gun companies should have done BEFORE they released animals into the wild!!

I wanted one of these.
More waiting.
Sigh.

 

[Girodin]

People bashing the plastic in the LCR based on those pics is classic and wonderfully hilarious. Nothing like willful ignorance.

 

[Handgunner]

Anyone know the wall thickness of a ball point pen?

I was interested in the .357 version.